Arab Nations To Convene Emergency Summit On Gaza Reconstruction: Report
The Arab League will meet in Egypt on March 4, planning to discuss countering US President Donald Trump’s outrageous claims of taking over Gaza, by forcefully displacing the Palestinians from their homeland. The meet will also discuss Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reluctance in resuming the ceasefire deal, and alleged eagerness to continue the Gaza genocide.
The summit is convened by Cairo, and aims to churn out an Arab alternative for the threats, which would be favourable for the Palestinians’ rights.
As per media report, the summit will produce plan to cover at least five years, which are split into three phases which will see early recovery, rebuilding the utility infrastructure; and housing reconstruction, service provision and establishing a “political track to implement the two-state solution.
The major roadblock to Egypt’s plan will the financing, says experts. Recently, the United Nations said that more than $50bn would be needed to rebuild Gaza. This will be discussed at the summit. Many assume that the GCC countries will play a leading role in financing reconstruction, but there is no clarity on how much can be raised, said the report.
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Trump repeatedly claim to take over Gaza. He said he wanted to “take over” Gaza, resettle Palestinians in Egypt and Jordan, and implement a “redevelopment plan” that would turn the enclave into “the Riviera of the Middle East”.
While Cairo and Amman at first rejected the idea. Upon meeting Trump, Jordan’s King Abdullah said he would take 2000 Palestinian children who are in need of medical assistance. Their families will accompany them. Egypt rejected the idea and said it would present “a comprehensive vision for rebuilding Gaza while ensuring Palestinians remain”, and that it would host an Arab summit to discuss the vision.
On February 21, Egypt, Jordan and the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries gathered in Riyadh to prepare the agenda for Tuesday’s summit in Cairo.
As the first phase of the ceasefire agreement expired on 1st March, Hamas, the resistance and political power in Gaza, said they are committed to implementing the deal. However, Israel is not ready for talks of the second phase, as reported by media.
Israel blocked entry of aid truck to Gaza, as Hamas refused to extend the first. Blocking of aid truck during Ramadan, made life harder for the war-battered Gaza. Israel had effectively blocked negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire which was supposed to start on March 1, as it would see the complete withdrawal of occupation force from the Strip.
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By rejecting the plan to extend phase one, Hamas called on the international community to pressure Israel to comply with the original plan.
Past Arb League summits were symbolic in the history of Palestine and its conflict with Israeli occupation. The Palestinian National Council, which set up the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), was established by an Arab League summit in 1964. A decade later, another summit recognised the PLO as the sole representative of the Palestinian people, elevating its diplomatic weight in the peace negotiations that led to the Oslo Accords.
After the failure of Oslo Agreement, a Saudi-led summit embraced Arab Peace initiative in 2002. Riyadh agreed to normalise with Israel if it withdrew to pre-1967 borders, allowed the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and provided a just solution for Palestinian refugees.4
After Israel’s 50-day war on Gaza in 2014, an Arab Summit pledged $5.4bn to reconstruct Gaza after Israel waged a 50-day war on it.
(With inputs from agencies)
